


Echoes of a Deafening Silence

by Squidgeey



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Also is nothing like voltron, Amputation, Gore, Gun mentions, I DONT MAKE THE RULES, It has Lances family, Just their names, Kidge is kinda mentioned, Kinda, M/M, Multi, Murder, die - Freeform, im sorry, it's barely the same characters, it's sad, just the story, more of an AU, most likely your favourite character will, theres murder
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-06-29 02:29:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15720111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squidgeey/pseuds/Squidgeey
Summary: Keith and Lance are a couple, living together happily.  Lance goes to his job, Keith enjoys gardening a bit too much, they watch cartoons, cuddle and do normal things that couples do.  But then came the first card.  Placed somewhere in the dark past of Keith, the entire dynamic changes.  And perhaps not for the better.





	1. Haunting Message

“Hey, Lance, have you seen Shiro in a while?”  
“Uh, no I don’t think I have, why d’ya ask Keith?”

It had recently occured to Keith that he hadn’t heard from Shiro in over a month, which was worrying, especially considering that he used to hear from him multiple times a day. He tended to be over-protective of Keith, always wanting to make sure he was alright, even if he had seen him that day before. Something was off, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it.

“I guess no reason, we just haven’t heard from him in a while, and I guess I must’ve been getting kinda worried”  
“Keith, he’s probably just off on one of his adventures again” reassured Lance, trying his best to comfort him.

Sitting down at the dining table, Keith glanced towards the pile of letters laying there. They were unopened, meaning that Lance had most likely grabbed them and left them there for him. Most of them were plain, typical bills that you’d see any day of the week. However, one of them was more intriguing than the rest. This one was almost… too plain. It was just a simple white envelope and it happened to catch Keith’s eye.

Lance was sat in front of the TV, eyes glued. He was going to be no help anytime soon. Sighing, Keith picked up the letter and noticed that there was no address, name, or any other form of identification on it. This sent off alarms in his brain, surely this note wouldn’t have been able to make his way to the house without an address.

“Lance, did you bring this mail in?”  
“Yeah, but I checked it, it’s all just bills and other boring crap” he said dismissively  
“I’m not sure that’s entirely true, I think you should come here,”

He made a big show about getting up, as if each step required more and more effort to take.

“Okay darl what could ever possibly be the matter?”

Keith stayed silent and just gestured towards the envelope that had been left on the table. Lance raised his eyebrows and picked it up. Turning it over, he tried to investigate, but he ultimately found nothing.

“Do you mind if I open it?”

Keith just shrugged and made no move to take the letter away from him. Slowly, Lance began to tear the paper envelope. Nothing jumped out, and he let out a breath he didn’t realise he was holding in. All that was inside was a small piece of notebook paper. Shaking the envelope upside down, Lance made sure that he wasn’t missing anything.

“All that’s inside is a note - it just says ‘Keith - The place from your childhood. Next week’”  
“That’s it? Are you sure?” Keith questioned, fingers tapping on the dark wood.  
“Absolutely,” Lance affirmed, passing the thin paper to Keith.

He turned the paper over and over in his hands. Surely there had to be a deeper meaning to it. But what was it? Maybe I should go…

“Keith I’m not entirely sure what you’re thinking, but I’ve known you for long enough that I know you’re most likely gonna do something impulsive and reckless”  
“I’m not, I swear”  
“C’mon, you made the face that you normally make while planning to do your own silly things,” Lance teased, putting his hand on Keith’s shoulder, “Oh, and you were also thinking aloud”

Shrugging his hand off, Keith stood up and made his way to his bedroom, thoughts buzzing around in his head.

“Baaabe, it was a joke, y’know I still love you right?”  
Keith hesitated for a second, “I know, I just have a lot to think about”  
“Well, if you want my input, I don’t think you should go, what if something happens to you?”

Try as he might, Keith found it next to impossible to sleep that night. All he was able to think about was the cryptic message that had been left for him. The place from his childhood, huh. It could only really be one spot, after all, Keith didn’t go anywhere often when he was younger, he just hung out in one area.

Even though Lance didn’t want him to go, Keith just knew that he had to. He couldn’t just let the mystery of that note stay a mystery. Then again, it’s not as if he had a choice, when it really came down to it.


	2. The Playing Card

Two days prior to when Keith was planning to go and investigate what that letter was all about, Lance head back home to his family. He wanted Keith to come along, especially as “It wasn’t a proper family gathering without my boyfriend”. However, Keith claimed that he really wasn’t feeling well, and didn’t think he’d be up for the trip.

“Oh well, it’s your loss I guess,” Lance sighed, opening the car door, “I’ll see you in about a week in a half, okay babe? Don’t do anything stupid without me, okay love you bye!” Trying to get out quickly, Lance slammed on the gas and went shooting forwards and almost wiped out the mailbox. He turned around with a sheepish smile and small wave, before driving off.

Keith was barely able to get a word in edgeways, but maybe that was for the better. He always got choked up whenever Lance had to go somewhere. The house always seemed so empty without his bubbly presence, hell, even he felt empty without Lance’s optimism around. But he had to put those thoughts aside, he needed to prepare himself for what was to come. He didn’t need a lot gear wise, but emotionally? Keith would need a lot longer to prepare than just two days.

 

In the end, the time leading up to the big day passed quickly, and still Keith wasn’t sure if he was ready. If he was perfectly honest with himself, he still wasn’t even sure if he’d ever be ready. Perhaps it was the fear of unknown that made him feel so unsure of himself. After all, he hadn’t been to this place since he was a child.

Taking a deep breath, Keith put one foot outside of the door, then another. From there, he knew that there wouldn’t be any turning back, he was stuck on this path he had made. And to his own surprise, this path wasn’t entirely unfamiliar.

It was almost as if his feet were doing all the thinking, because even if he tried, Keith wouldn’t be able to remember the way to the alley. However his feet were still finding their way and it wasn’t long before they dragged him in front of the place where he grew up.

To be fair, it looked better than he remembered it being. It seemed to have a bit more sun, and light did actually make it all the way to the brick wall at the back. Keith chalked it up to his memories being tainted by the emotions he felt at the time. Loneliness and anger, sadness and despair. Those sorts of things would change your perception of places, especially as a young child.

Dragging his hand across the calloused wall, Keith made his way to the back of alley. An intense smell pierced through his nose. He would’ve thought it to just be water, but it seemed like something more. Quickly, Keith realised what it was he was smelling and wrinkled his nose in disgust. Urine. Maybe his memories weren’t too far off the bat.

Cardboard boxes were draped around, and some were stacked up in a corner. A crunch came from underneath Keith’s foot and he instantly looked down. A simple piece of rubbish, although one of many. Taking deep breaths, Keith tried to calm his heart rate. Constantly expecting something to jump out at him, Keith was on edge.

Investigating some more, he couldn’t find anything of interest. All that was around was trash and more trash. Keith sighed, the letter was just a prank after all. He was stupid for thinking it would be anything in the first place. Lance was right after all, as much as Keith hated to admit.

As he was leaving, he noticed something on the back on an electrical box that he had missed while entering. It was a playing card with something scrawled across the front. Even though it had been defaced, Keith could still make out the fact that it was the King of Spades. He wanted to leave it, wanted to think that it wasn’t meant for him, but Keith was drawn to it nonetheless.

Getting closer, it became easier to make out the words. That didn’t mean, however, that Keith was able to make sense of what they were trying to say. The words just swam around inside his head, not truly sinking in.

Murder Pidge Gunderson. You have a week or everyone you have grown close to will die.


	3. You Bloody Saw it!

Keith didn’t know how to react, surely this had to all just be an elaborate prank. But in the back of his head, he wasn’t too sure he believed that. After all, they did make him come to a place only he would have a significant connection to. But… to murder a random person? Why did he have to do that? What did he do to deserve this task? 

A loud beep from a car horn in the street outside of the alley broke his stupor. His thoughts came to a crashing halt. All Keith knew was that he wanted to be home. He wanted to be in his bed, covers pulled over his head as if he was a child hiding from a demon. In a way, it was what he wanted to do. He wanted to run from the demons that tried to haunt him. But this was reality, Keith had to face the card that was in his hand. But even then, there was another mystery, thanks to a small key taped to the side.

 

In the end though, Keith just tried to ignore the card and carry on with his life, at the very least until Lance got home. He just needed someone to rely on, to talk about his problems. Lance was always that person for him, they really made a good team. Keith had known him since he was young, and he was one of the first friends he made. Lance was a part of his life that he knew he couldn’t live without. 

Somehow, Keith made it up to 2 days until the deadline without anything happening and his mind was beginning to calm down. Of course, there was the worry in the back of his head that he was leaving his friends to be hurt, or even die. Maybe it was selfish, it was just one life for the life of his friends after all. And all of a sudden murder didn’t seem so impossible. But Keith wasn’t like that, he knew he didn’t truly have it in him to murder someone.

Returning home after a movie to take his mind off of things, Keith noticed a package at his door. Instantly, his heart sank at the familiar blank look to it. It was too plain, no addresses, no words written anywhere on the long rectangular box. Every ounce of his body was screaming at him to throw it out, to ignore it and maybe it would go away. But much like before, his curiosity won out and Keith lugged the box inside.

He didn’t realise straight away, but once he was about to set the package down on the dining table, Keith realised that the underside was slightly damp. Keith’s heart somehow sank even further, fearing that whatever was in the box was not good news. And good news did not reach his eyes when he finally opened it.

A partially rusted saw, covered in amounts of what looked to be fresh blood. Instantaneously, bile rose from the pit of Keith’s stomach and made his mouth taste like acid. Tears in his eyes, he ran to the kitchen to hurl up the popcorn that he had just eaten. The metallic stench of the blood combined with the vomit made it impossible for Keith to keep the food down.

Vision blurred, Keith made his way back to the cardboard box to investigate further. He tried to avoid the pooled up blood as best as he could. In fact, his interest was piqued by a stained card. Queen of Spades. This time however, there wasn’t an instruction that was written across the front. The only was this message could be interpreted was as a threat. The worst is yet to come.  
Keith didn’t know what to think, what could possibly be worse than a bloody saw? Actually, now that he thought about it, Keith realised just how much is truly worse than a bloody saw. Maybe he just got off easy this time. 

The taste of bile still stuck in his throat, Keith hunted for something to get rid of it. He didn’t realise how badly he was shaking until he accidentally spilled some water over his front. Keith didn’t care however, he had other things to worry about. Slowly, he begin to sip the water, until it was all gone. Placing the glass on the counter, he tried to walk to his room, to his sanctuary but his legs were wobbling ferociously. He didn’t have control of himself, and he didn’t make it far before his legs completely gave out.

Lance came home the next day, witnessing a sight he never thought he would have to see. His boyfriend collapsed on the ground, asleep, surrounded by damp carpet. Instantly he rushed over to Keith’s side.

“Keith, crap, are you okay? Darling you gotta wake up,” 

Lances words were tender but his movements were not. He was desperate, trying to get his partner to come to. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open, but Keith was visibly confused about was was happening. He looked around, clearly wondering where he was.

“Lance? Why’re you here? And why am I on the floor?”  
“Love, I don’t know, I just got home. Do you think you could tell me what happened?” Lance placed his hand on Keith’s forehead, as his eyes combed over his body.  
“All I remember is receiving a package, and… oh god, it had a bloody saw in it Lance, there was a saw with fresh blood,” 

Keith’s eyes went wild, and became distressed. Luckily, Lance knew what to do, he brought Keith up and into his arms. He pulled Keith’s head into his chest and buried his face in his hair.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, everything’s going to be alright, you’re safe,” Lance said, patting Keith’s back softly, “Are you sure it wasn’t all just a bad dream darling?”

Keith shook his head furiously and pointed towards the dining table. Lance followed his finger up to the box sat there, as if it was a culprit caught red-handed in a crime. Making sure that Keith would be okay, he went to go check it out. Just as he made his way over to the box did he noticed the sharp smell of metal that was hovering around in the air. 

Everything was confirmed by Lance’s own eyes when he saw the saw laying in the box. It was almost funny in a way, it seemed so dangerous, but here it was, stuck in a state of dormancy in a box. But Lance got the confirmation he needed, so he just went back to consoling Keith.

Lance sat on the couch with him and held his hand tightly, reassuring him that he was still there, and that he wasn’t planning to leave. He let Keith ramble about everything he needed to, his mind running a thousand miles per hour, even after just being awoken. The thing that he was mainly concerned about was who the blood belonged to. That person may be in danger of dying, it did seem like a fair amount of blood after all. 

“I may have actually been given something that would help clarify whose it is,” Lance said carefully.  
“You do? Well then we have to check it out, we need to make sure that everyone’s okay, right?”

Lance grimaced, he knew that he would have to be the voice of reason for Keith while he was in this state.

“I’m pretty sure it’s from the person who sent the original note and the saw, it has the same plain packaging after all,”  
“I don’t care, I’m willing to bear whatever it contains to make sure that the people we know are okay,” Keith exclaimed, gritting his teeth.

Carefully leaving Keith on the couch with his thoughts and nervousness, Lance went to the car to grab the large package he had received. It was heavy, and that fact brought many concerns with it. He needed to make sure that any doubts in Keith’s mind were dispelled. He needed to make sure he would be okay.

Once inside, he put the package down on the coffee table in front of where Keith was sitting. Anxiously, he began to pry it open, as Keith watched over with fear evident in his eyes. You couldn’t instantly see what was inside, as it was covered by a styrofoam sheet. Carefully, Lance began to peel away the layers as he just continued staring. What was inside was worse than what you could ever imagine.

A severed arm, that had clearly been sawed off. It was balanced precariously inside a smaller cardboard box, keeping it upright. Clearly it wasn’t a clean amputation too, flesh being hacked at and the saw teeth marks leaving grooves in the bone. The hand was outstretched in a claw, as if it was grabbing at something before it became unable to move, tension permanently caught in time. Wedged in a cut in the palm, as if it was the cause of all the damage, was a Jack of Spades, with the message inscribed. You have one more day, Keith.

Keith couldn’t even bear to look, he had turned away and was hiding himself from the world. What else could he do, these messages, the stupid playing cards were telling him to murder someone, and if he didn’t, they were going to kill his friends. He had one day to commit an atrocity, or else all of his friends would die. Lance would die, the person who just consoled him after finding a bloody saw, the saw that ruined this poor person’s body. 

Speaking of Lance, he looked shell shocked. He clearly wasn’t expecting… whatever that arm represented. Keith’s hand looked for Lances and held on even tighter than they had before. He felt so apologetic, he dragged Lance into something a lot deeper than he thought he might be a part of. But they’d get through it, as long as they had each other.


	4. Arcades

As neither of them truly knew what to do with a bloody saw and amputated arm, they decided to just hide them away in the back of their garage. In their minds, it was the best decision they could come to. When you don’t know what the perpetrator can do, you have to do your best to not upset them. 

“Uhm, hey, Lance?”  
“Yeah, what’s up cutie?” Lance asked, his face gentle.  
“Do you know anyone named Pidge? A Pidge Gunderson?”

Lance seemed especially confused at that question.

“I mean, I guess kinda? I was friends with a girl named Katie Holt who went by the name Pidge when she was around people she didn’t know, she used to hang out around the arcade I went to, she was hella smart.”

“Aw, that’s a super sweet thing from your past, how come you’ve never told me that before?”

“It’s never really come up in conversation you nerd,” Lance laughed it off, and cuddled further into Keith’s shoulder, “Just shush and watch the movie.”

However, he couldn’t concentrate on the movie, he was deep in thought. No matter what it took, Keith would not let any more harm come to his friends. He needed to protect them, as they had tried so hard to protect him from the harsh realities of the world. If the life of a girl was all that needed to be sacrificed, it was worth it. 

He would have to find her at the arcade, it was the only lead he had to go on. If Keith had tried to question any further, Lace would most likely become suspicious. Once he actually did it, he needed to make sure that no evidence would be left behind, needed to make sure that he couldn’t be traced back to the scene of the crime.

Taking the car just as Lance fell asleep (he always ends up falling asleep early to movies), Keith made his way to the arcade that Lance used to populate when he was younger. The flashing blue and purple neon lights plus the smell of stale candy confirmed that he was in the right place.

Instantly, Keith layed eyes on who he could only assume was her, with her round glasses and short hair. Pidge was very focused on whatever she was playing, and was evidently very good at it. When she failed at it, she exploded in a tiny ball of curses and aggressive movements.

She seemed to be very childlike, focusing on the smaller things on the game, and Keith could predict that she did the same with life. Pidge fit perfectly in the space, her personality shining through and complimenting the area around her. Not only that, but she seemed to be right at home, perfectly melding into the environment and becoming one with it. 

It was clear what he had to do. He sauntered on over to her with confidence in his step, no matter how fake it may be, and slammed 50 cents down on the machine. Pidge was forced to look at him, eyes blinking in confusion.

“What the hell do you want pal?”   
“I want a game of course, if I beat you, you gotta go… out on a date with me”  
“That’s seriously weird, I’ve never met you before and you’re already asking me out?”  
“Are you suggesting you’d lose?” Keith threatened, leaning in closer to her face, “Are you scared you’re gonna fail to a newbie?”

Pidge seemed flabbergasted that someone would even have the guts to do what Keith was doing right now. After all, no one had even come up to talk to her before, or even treated her as a normal human. Katie Holt always seemed to be placed on a pedestal, but all that was below her was a rosebush full of thorns.

“Alright you’re on Yorak,”  
“Yorak?”  
“Well duh, you need a nickname,”

In the first half of the game, it was crystal clear that Pidge was better than Keith, simply based upon time spent on the game. Keith barely knew the rules, but he had desperation on his side. He needed to win. He needed to win for Shiro, for the people who helped him when he was younger, for Lance. 

In the second half, he began to understand more of the game, and he started to catch up in points to Pidge. Immediately, she leaned in closer to the screen and tightened her grip on the controls. However, Keith also did the same, ever more determined to win. As the finish line raced towards the both of them, and it became neck and neck.

Then Pidge gained a sudden burst of speed and raced past the finish. Confused, Keith looked around. Surely he should have won. He needed to win, he had the lives of many in his hands. But for the first time since he was younger, life taught him that things don’t go his way.

Grinning madly, Pidge looked to Keith, and instantly lost the grin when she saw the crestfallen look on his face. It almost made her feel bad for beating him, he tried so hard to beat her after all. He actually tried to beat her, which was more than could be said for all the other patrons who frequented the arcade. They all passed her by without a second thought.

“Hey, you must’ve really wanted that date, didn’t you Yorak?”  
“I- uh- yeah I did,” Keith replied, hands digging far into his pockets.  
“Well seeing as that was the hardest fought race I’ve had in a long time, I’ll give it to you.”  
“You will?”  
Pidge smiled and looked down at her feet, brown hair swept over her glasses, “Yeah, you’re an interesting character after all, I like you,”

Like an excited puppy, Keith grabbed her by hand and whisked her out of the arcade. It was almost pitch black outside, making it hard to see the steep steps that lead out onto the sidewalk. It completely contrasted the inside of the arcade. In there, it was bright and fun, whereas out here, in the cold moonlight, any of your fears could be hiding in the shadows.

Considering that it was about ten at night by this point, the surrounding area was completely lacking in people. In fact, no one was around at all. The place was barren, devoid of all human life. It created a sense of intimacy between the two. After all, they were alone in this place together. Maybe it was then that Pidge sensed the potential danger.

Subconsciously, Pidge felt Keith’s hand slip from hers but kept on walking anyway. She was entranced by his strange entrance into her life and was encapsulated in his charm. Whatever she may have possibly been expecting to happen at that point, no one will know. However she wasn’t expected the hands to suddenly push at her back, sending her flying down the steep stairway.

It wasn’t long before she hit the hard concrete, the blunt force trauma sending spider fractures all over her skull and killing her on impact. The glass in her glasses shattered, sending shards scattering across the ground. Able to be seen through the rims, Pidges eyes were wide open and vacant, still containing the terror she felt in her last few moments. However, they had none of the life and vitality that she was full of before. 

Quickly, Keith knew that he had to get her off of the ground, or else she’d start to bleed and leave a trace. He grabbed the duct tape from his jacket pocket and taped across her wounded temple, not allowing any blood to leak out. Even though he wanted to leave as little evidence as was possible, Keith knew that nothing could be done about the glass shards.

Taking care as to not disturb anything, he hefted the corpse up and over his shoulder, and made sure to pocket the frame of the glasses. Even though it was just a dead body, Keith still had respect for it, and carefully placed it down in the trunk. There was only one place that no one would really be able to check. His own backyard.

Overall, it didn’t take too long for Keith to make his way back home. By the time he arrived, it had to have been around 11pm. Peeking into the window, he checked on the figure that was still fast asleep on the satin couch. He wouldn’t have had much time to bury the body.

Making his way to the back of the house, Keith grabbed the shovel that leaned against the dingy garden shed. The grave would have to be deep, but didn’t have to be too long. After all, Pidge was a small creature. It shouldn’t be too hard to make a hole for someone like that.

When he had finished, the moon was high above his head. A drip of sweat rolled down the side of his head as Keith threw the shovel to the side. Gently, the body was lowered into the pit. It was strange, her body still held tension, but still seemed peaceful. But something was missing, something that made Pidge who she was. Luckily, he remembered just in time.

Keith grabbed the round frame of her glasses and delicately placed them above her nose. Now it just looked like she was permanently frozen in time. Little effort had to be put in to covering the body with clay and soil, a lot less than what was required to dig it. Mounds upon mounds of dirt were piled on top of the corpse, until the sin had been hidden from the world.  
Silently, Keith made his way back inside and heard the slight snores from his partner. He had gotten away with it, right under his nose. Even though he knew he shouldn’t be, Keith was almost proud of what he had done. Something that most people can’t find the ability to do, and he did it to save his friends.

“Hey, Lance, you should wake up”

Keith only received a groan in response.

“Seriously, you’re going to get a sore back”

That was all Lance needed to wake up, he didn’t want to cause any more damage than had already been done to his back. Slightly ushering Lance forward, they walked towards the bedroom together, ready to sleep on this whole ordeal.


	5. Unexpected Visitor

“Darling, I’m heading off to work now,”

Those words were all that Keith needed to break him out of his daze. The swirling depths of his coffee suddenly seemed uninteresting. He looked up with a slight wave and smile, sending Lance off for the day.

Both of them had decided earlier on in the morning that Keith should stay home and rest, to take a break from the experience that he had recently had. However he wasn’t one to just sit on his ass and do nothing, he needed to be at least slightly productive. Perhaps it was the time to get started on some landscaping in the backyard. But landscaping had only just started when a loud knock rang out through the air.

“I’ll be there in a second, just hold on!” Keith called out to the unknown visitor.

Whoever he had expected to see, it definitely wasn’t the sight that greeted him at the front door. A disheveled and sweaty Shiro, looking as if he had just ran a marathon. But, something wasn’t right, something was missing from the silhouette. Like it had multiple other times in the past few days, Keith’s heart sank into the pits of his stomach.

Shiro was wearing a long sleeve shirt, but that wasn’t what was so unsettling. What was unsettling was the fact that his right sleeve was tied around a stump of an arm, cut short just below the shoulder. It looked like a near-fresh wound, white shirt tainted with dark crimson. 

“Oh my god, Shiro, are you okay?” Keith questioned frantically, mind racing a thousand miles per hour, “Do you need help? What happened? Here quick, come inside.”

Carefully, he began to lead Shiro inside, taking care to avoid the stump as much as humanly possible. In his managed hurry, Keith missed the stunned look on Shiro’s face, as if he wasn’t entirely sure how he had made it to Keith’s house.

However, Shiro had medical training, so there was at least some sort of tourniquet made from cloth around the stump. There was some degree of professionalism that would at least make sure he was okay for a bit longer.

As soon as they made it through the door, almost as if it was a second nature to him, Keith instantly began fussing over Shiro to try and make sure he was okay. It only took a few seconds of silence to make him realise that Shiro needed some time to breath, as well as some time to get his grounding. Not too long after, he began to speak his mind.

“To be honest Keith, I’m really not sure what happened,” Shiro said slowly, voice wavering, “I was just walking back home one day, until I got struck across the back of head. The next thing I knew, I could barely see, but I was in a room with next to no light in it.”

Shiro continued to explain what had happened to him to Keith, as he leaned in, listening in intently. All he could do was listen, and even if he had tried to comfort Shiro, Keith wasn’t entirely too sure if it would even help. By the end, Keith learnt that all he remembered was being kidnapped, then waking up in a searing pain having lost his arm.

Speaking of the arm, Keith decided to take a deep breath and look at the wound. Tension quickly fell from the shoulders of him when he saw that the wound didn’t look too bad. It seemed to be only minorly infected, if at all, and should have been able to be cleaned up within next to no time at all

At the very least, Shiro was reassured by Keith’s promises to make sure that he would be safe and okay with him and Lance. He would spend a few days with the couple, to make sure he didn’t get into any trouble, until he would be able to return home himself. Thinking about it though, Keith wasn’t too sure when that may actually be. After all, he did just find a dazed friend at his doorstep.

Just as any hospitable host would, Keith began making what Shiro had previously referred to as the ‘elixir of life’. Many late night studying sessions and marking of his own students work was fueled by this drink from the gods. Personally, Keith didn’t see the appeal of it, but he made sure to keep a stash of the best coffee beans around for whenever Shiro decided that he wanted to pop in for a day. 

Eventually, the day had completely passed the two by, leaving them with just the dregs as well as the beginning of evening. It wasn’t long before Lance was due home, exhausted from the labour of working. He was excited to just lay in front on the couch with Keith, to have him in his arms as the night flew over their heads. Dreams such as these were crushed however, when Shiro could be spotted on that exact same couch, mug in hand.

“Hey Keith, looks like you’ve found the ringleader after all!” Lance chirped.

It wasn’t until he turned around the corner to sit with them that he witnessed the true horror that had befallen Shiro. Instantly, he felt winded, as if all the air had been sucked straight of his lungs. Keith’s friend (whom he had gotten to know as the years went on, just with the occasional interactions that the two had) had lost an arm. The cheery look on Lance’s face fell even further when he began to consider the deeper meaning behind the missing arm.

“Crap, Keith, why, in any of the known universes, do you think we received Shiro’s goddamn amputated arm in the mail,”

**Author's Note:**

> Although there are a few short first chapters, they will get a bit longer as time goes on. After all, this is a 23k word story. I hope you enjoy!.


End file.
